Related Stories

In the pre-game warmup, Ben Scrivens wore a jersey with Johnny Bower’s name on the back and tried not to think of the legend’s place as one of the greatest goaltenders in Maple Leafs history.

With time ticking down in the third period Saturday night at the Air Canada Centre, he claims not to have given much thought to the possibility of his first career shutout either, although the grin on his face suggested otherwise.

In an otherwise ratty first round of the Battle of Ontario though, Scrivens was superb in kicking aside 34 Ottawa Senators shots, including 19 in the second period, to earn that first statistical highlight of his career in a 3-0 Toronto victory.

While one game does not a Johnny Bower make, it was a big night for Scrivens, who is under the spotlight until James Reimer returns from his knee injury, the win was huge for the goaltender and the team, which moved two points ahead of the Senators and solo sixth place in the NHL’s Eastern Conference.

“I was focussed completely on the game,” Scrivens said about the possibility of the shutout late in the third with the Leafs leading 2-0.

“It was a good chance for me to test my mettle. I was pleased I was up to the task. When the guys play that well in front of me, it makes me look pretty good.”

While the game wasn’t always easy on the eyes, as both teams battle the injury bug and some ratty play, we are certainly starting to get an indication of the type of hockey Leafs coach Randy Carlyle expects. With offence at premium, messages are left to be sent in other ways and the Leafs coach did it on Saturday be elevating rough-and-tumble fourth-liner Colton Orr onto a unit with Nazem Kadri and Clarke MacArthur.

“It’s amazing how things quiet down when he’s out there,” Carlyle said. “I thought he was fine. I thought he gave us what we needed.

The Leafs got the critical first goal of the game just 3:14 in, especially significant against a Sens team that had scored just six goals in its previous four games. As an added bonus, it came from the fourth line off a scramble that finally went off Frazer McLaren and past Craig Anderson in the Ottawa net.

Toronto got its insurance marker at 8:32 of the third when the team finally got some sustained pressure in the Sens zone and a Dion Phaneuf point shot was redirected off of Tyler Bozak’s skate for the first-line centre’s fifth of the season. An empty-netter by defenceman John-Michael Liles — his first goal of the season — finished off the scoring.

Again a reflection of the Carlyle brand, the Leafs were outshot for the sixth consecutive game and yet have pounded out a 5-1 record in that stretch. It’s about seizing opportunity and not giving up juicy ones in your own end.

With so little offence, this game was more on the role players and the man in net. Carlyle has yet to heap huge praise on either goaltender this year — nor strip them down. And it’s clear that’s part of his strategy of getting Reimer and Scrivens to flourish in an at-times demanding environment.

“Your goaltending is one part of your hockey club and they are open to the most criticism or the most praise,” Carlyle said as the team hustled to catch a charter flight to Florida for games Monday against the Panthers and Tuesday vs. the Lightning.

‘But it’s up to us and it’s up to them to make the commitment to what they need to do to give you a chance. That’s really the only pressure that’s put on them.

“All the other pressure is put on by who? It’s not us inside the room. That’s part of the issue with coaching in this market and trying to prepare your group. There’s lots of things you have to try to deflect and stay focussed on the things you can control.”

It’s a mantra that Scrivens seems to accept willingly as he works to leave the AHL behind him and forge a regular spot on an NHL team.

“I’ve compared it to being on the tee in golf,” Scrivens said. “You line up your feet, you get in your stance and run a couple of reminders in your head and then you go out and execute. It’s basic sports psychology stuff. I didn’t invent it.”

Nor did Carlyle, of course, but he’s helping sell it and so far anyway, the calm in the Maple Leafs net is paying off.

Leafs pick up sloppy shutout win over Sens

At the end of the pre-game ceremony to honour the 1963 Maple Leafs on Saturday night, Eddie Shack didn’t want to leave the Air Canada Centre ice.

Yukking it up with coach Randy Carlyle and some of the current squad on his way out, perhaps The Entertainer had a nose for the action that was on deck.

The Battle of Ontario (Round 1, 2013 edition) was barely a skirmish save for the occasional scrum late in the game. The highlight for the crowd may have been a video tribute to former Leaf captain Dave Keon, who was in the house for the celebration.

That said, the Leafs took care of business in a season where ugly wins and losses are going to be commonplace, especially as weariness and injuries pile up.

Fraser McLaren’s first goal as a Leaf stood up as the game winner in a 3-0 victory over the Ottawa Senators.